1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a multiband camera control apparatus and a multiband camera control method.
2. Description of the Related Art
A multiband camera is a type of camera that captures in a plurality of bands having more specific wavelength transmission characteristics than those of the R, G, B filters of an ordinary 3-band color camera. As means for switching bands, a wavelength variable filter as disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication 2001-99710 may be used, or a rotating filter as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,549,653 may be used. Alternatively, bands composed of light emissions from a single LED or a plurality of LEDs having narrow-band spectroscopic characteristics have been proposed. Although the number of bands differs, depending on the apparatus and purpose, the transmittance characteristic in each band is as shown in FIG. 2 of Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication 2001-99710.
Since there are generally as many captured images as there are bands, there are 16 images in 16 bands, as shown in FIG. 2 of Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication 2001-99710, and there are 10 images in 10 bands with a rotating filter, as shown in FIG. 5B of U.S. Pat. No. 6,549,653.
As for band switching, for example, when there are images in 18 bands, a method of displaying a graphical user interface (hereinafter, abbreviated as GUI) to select one of 18 bands for switching can be considered. Alternatively, the following method can be considered: a GUI having various setting items is displayed and the band is switched using, for example, the choice “Filter/Band” in the setting items. However, it is difficult to imagine what wavelengths these bands show only from the band numbers.
A user who wants to capture multiband images, while switching bands with a GUI as described above has to set the parameters which will possibly change each time the band is switched. For example, one of such parameters may be the item “Shutter Speed.” This is for performing switching control of the exposure time of the multiband camera. Generally, since exposure time can be changed band by band, the user has to reset the exposure time each time the user changes bands.
Similarly, as an item to be set on a band-by-band basis, pixel shift using the item “Shift/Y” can be considered. In addition, many other items, including aperture and focus position, which are changed on a band-by-band basis can be considered.
Furthermore, in a method of controlling the focus in a multiband camera, a case where autofocusing is done on a band-by-band basis can be considered, as in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication 2001-5046. In this case, the user need not adjust the focus position before capturing. In capturing, the processes in S2, S3, and S4 shown in FIG. 2 of Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication 2001-5046 are carried out on a band-by-band basis. That is, using the autofocus function, it is determined whether the change of the focus position is necessary (S2). If the focus is changed, autofocusing is done (S3).